Pasture Tips to Control Weeds

Use a harrow to drag your pasture. Harrowing breaks up manure piles so that grass plants aren’t smothered and so plants can better use the nutrients and organic materials--and become healthier to out compete weeds.

Photo: Alayne Blickle

The key to avoid having weeds overtake your horse pastures is to make your pastures as competitive as possible for grass--a healthy stand of grass will go a long way toward out competing the weeds. Here are six important things you can do to avoid weeds.

1) Don’t allow your pastures to be stressed by overgrazing. When pastures get down to 3 to 4 inches, remove horses from the pasture. Avoid bare spots. An open area of soil is an invitation to weeds--many weed seeds can lay dormant for up to 50 years just waiting for the right conditions to happen. Not overgrazing ensures that grass will have enough reserves left after grazing to permit rapid regrowth. Put horses back on pastures when the grass has re-grown to about six to eight inches.

2) Regular mowing of your pastures will help discourage many weeds (most can’t withstand mowing) and make your grasses healthier. Once horses are done grazing an area, set your mower to six inches and mow away. Horses are selective grazers, eating some plants close to the ground and leaving others untouched. Mowing evens the playing field by cutting the tall plants down to a size where they are more tasty for the horse and encouraging grass plants to produce more leaves, called tillers, thereby making pastures thicker.

3) Harrow (or drag) the pasture to spread manure. Harrowing breaks up manure piles so that grass plants aren’t smothered and so plants can better use the nutrients and organic materials--and become healthier to out compete weeds. Pull a harrow with a tractor, riding lawn mower, ATV or a small 4WD vehicle. Or, simply take a manure fork and spread manure by hand. A wide variety of harrows can be purchased from farm and tractor supply stores. A basic harrow can also be simply made from a discarded piece of chain-link fence with a couple of old tires tied down for weight works well. An old, metal bedspring, metal gate or similar item may also work.

4) Do a soil test. Having the healthiest soil possible will make your grass plants grow better. Healthy grass plants out compete weeds. Apply lime and fertilizer accordingly. Never apply fertilizer without a soil test, because otherwise you simply have no idea as to what your plants and soils need. By following the soil test results you reduce the chance of applying too much fertilizer and having it wash away, wasting money and polluting the environment.

5) Spread lime--if your soil test calls for it. If you have acidic soils using lime is crucial. Lime helps adjust the soil’s pH so that nutrients in the soil can be utilized by the grass plant. After you spread lime, it may look like you just fertilized because you’ve suddenly made the nitrogen and other nutrients available to your grass plants.

6) Spread compost. In the early fall and late spring when the grasses are growing well spread compost in a 1/4" or 1/2" layer. Compost is a rich soil amendment that adds nutrients, organics and beneficial microbes. It helps plants become healthier and more disease resistant – and outcompete those nasty weeds!

About the Author

Alayne

Alayne Renée Blickle, a life-long equestrian and reining competitor, is the creator/director of Horses for Clean Water, an award winning, nationally acclaimed environmental education program. Well known for her enthusiastic, down-to-earth approaches, Alayne is an educator and photojournalist who has worked with horse and livestock owners for over 15 years teaching manure composting, pasture management, mud and dust control, water conservation, chemical use reduction and wildlife enhancement. She teaches and travels North America and writes for horse publications. Alayne and her husband raise and train their reining horses at their ranch in sunny Nampa, Idaho.

Comments

The views expressed in the posts and comments of this blog do not necessarily reflect those of The Horse or Blood-Horse Publications. They should be understood as the personal opinions of the author. All readers are encouraged to leave comments; all points of view are welcome, but comments that are discourteous and/or off-topic may be removed.

I've been really diligent mowing my fields this year to keep the weeds at bay and the results have been phenomenal. I set the wheels high and the grass is thriving like I've never seen. I also had the local farmer do a pass with fertilizer. So, I guess with these two things and the rain we've had this year, my fields look great. Oh, I forgot to add, I rotate every sixty days.

Rose Ann

15 Jul 2013 6:53 PM

I rotate sheep and goats through my pastures, and cattle if I can. It cleans up a lot of the weeds, and adds fertilizer without increasing the parasite problem.

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